David Black said he is offering "compensation" to the federal and provincial governments in exchange for getting debt guarantees, a condition which private lenders are waiting for before putting up money to see an oil refinery built.
A press release from Kitimat Clean didn't specify what that compensation would look like, but it is among the many steps forward for the proposal, which still include filing for environmental permits, working out economic agreements with local First nations (he specifically mentions the Kitselas and Haisla nations) and negotiating feed stock contracts, among other steps.
David Black, who is the Chairman of Black Press which owns this newspaper, is proposing to build a $22 billion refinery on land between Kitimat and Terrace.
He announced on December 4 that Hatch Ltd. had concluded a seven month design and feasibility study on the project.
The report outlines the design for the refinery which would take in 550,000 barrels of oil a day and produce 460,000 barrels of refined fuels.
Black anticipates the refinery, in operation, would employ 3,000, with another 3,000 jobs created in nearby petrochemical plants.
The refinery would produce gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel.
Black continues to pitch the refinery as an environmentally conscious alternative to shipping raw bitumen, which he says is nearly impossible to clean from a spill.
His proposed refinery would emit 1/3 of the CO2 of a normal heavy oil refinery, he said through the news release.